


take my hand and lead the way

by MidnightBlueMoon



Series: I can't stop creating short fics for this fandom, I'm sorry [6]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Abusive Relationships, Alternate Universe - Normal Life, Alternate Universe - Priests, F/M, Healing, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Introspection, Past Abuse, Past Relationship(s), Physical Abuse, Priest Phil Coulson, Recovery, Religion, Religious Discussion
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-04
Updated: 2018-05-04
Packaged: 2019-04-18 07:54:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 585
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14208612
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MidnightBlueMoon/pseuds/MidnightBlueMoon
Summary: "Father, tell me, do we get what we deserve?”  Skye wasn’t sure why she asked. Scratch that - sheknewwhy she asked.





	take my hand and lead the way

**Author's Note:**

> The title is the opening line of _Help_ by Hurts.
> 
> There is a mention of an **abusive relationship** , but it's not the main ship. It's in the past and the victim is slowly recovering from the trauma. Please don't read it if that's something you don't like to read or can't read.
> 
> Again, I need to explain a little bit: Phil Coulson is a priest and Skye asks for his advice.

“Father, tell me, do we get what we deserve?”

Skye wasn’t sure why she asked. Father Coulson looked at her with soft eyes. “I don’t know, Skye. It depends, I guess. God is forgiving. He won’t punish you for the mistakes we make along the way. But do I believe that He gives us what we need to become who we are supposed to be? Yes, I do.”

Skye nodded. She thought of Grant’s wild eyes, about him screaming when they dragged him away from her. About the nightmares of him screaming her name again, and again, and again. Sometimes she could still feel the ghosts of bruises on her body, could still feel his hands on her. Those were the bad days, the days that left her sobbing into her pillow and scrubbing at her skin in the shower, because she needed to get rid of him on her, he needed to be gone. She took a shaky breath.

And she thought of Leo. Of Leo, who had helped her to get up, to press charges, who had bandaged the cuts and treated her like she was something – precious. Who held her at night, when she couldn't sleep without being afraid, who had taken care of her, when she needed it and Leo had never, never asked for anything in return. He had looked at her horrified, like her asking how to repay him made something inside him break. And he told her, he would never ever want something from her for being a friend. _That's not how it works_ , he said. Leo was something else, at least to Skye. He was something _good_ , and he somehow thought, that she was too. She didn't understand it.

Skye thought about what would have been if she hadn’t met Grant. Would she be who she was now? What would her life be like? Would she have been better off or worse? But she knew that in the end no-one would be able to tell her the answers to that questions. 

But she sometimes wondered, if maybe, maybe she had needed to fall for Grant. That it was not a mistake because she _had_ loved him. Because she did love him, she loved him so much, but he didn't love her back. She knew that now, but it had taken a lot of time. 

But she met Leo, didn’t she? And he was kind and loving in a way Skye had never experienced before – and she only met him because she ended up in hospital. Which was not how you should meet, but things  _do_ get better. Things changed for her, even though she was in the darkest place she had ever been. She had made it out alive, scarred but breathing, and sometimes she just wanted to cry, because she was still here.

And it was always Leo, who held her when she needed it. Maybe it was dumb to think it, but maybe she wouldn’t have met him without Grant. Maybe she would have met him anyways. Skye didn't know and she was sure she would never find out, but... maybe He did have a plan for everyone mapped out. Maybe He hadn't left her alone in this world. Maybe He had. Either way, Skye was okay where she was now. She wasn’t great. But she thought, maybe she could be.

Skye smiled. “Thanks, father.” Father Coulson's eyes looked at her and whatever he was looking for, he seemed to find it. He smiled back.


End file.
